Film veterans speak conservation, appreciation

When current movies are discussed, the artists mentioned may include Drew Barrymore, George Clooney and Blake Lively.

Names that are less often discussed, though, include Quincy Jones, John Barrymore, Rosemary Clooney and Ernie Lively, and what many don’t realize is that the latter list has paved the way for film as we know it today.

Studying the history of film, as with all facets of history, shows people today how to replicate successful models from the past and how to avoid mistakes that have already been made.

That was the predominant theme present in the films, music and speakers at the fifth annual Turner Classic Movie Film Festival in Hollywood from April 10 to 13. TCM is a television network that airs movies ranging from “Casablanca” to more recent films such as “Field of Dreams” starring Kevin Costner.

While it is often thought of as a channel that airs only old black and white films, it is actually the history channel for feature films because it provides historical information on music and artists from the films’ time period.

This year’s TCM festival was themed, “Family in the Movies: The Ties that Bind,” and celebrated the network’s 20th birthday and the fifth anniversary of the festival. The event featured nearly one hundred guests and speakers who were pioneers in entertainment and are still important contributors to films being made today, including Jerry Lewis, Quincy Jones and Mel Brooks.

These contributors were central to the theme of the festival as it aimed to shed light on “the filmmaking dynasties that have entertained generations,” according to the festival’s website.

Lewis played a major role in making the Video Assist system, which allows filmmakers immediate playback of takes when a scene is filmed. Not to mention, in 1963 he directed and played as the original “Nutty Professor”. Yes — there was one before Eddie Murphy.

Additionally, Brooks was a frontrunner in comedy with projects such as “Blazing Saddles” and “The Producers,” a musical that made Brooks well known for not only film, but Broadway, as well.

Having been nicknamed “Q” by Frank Sinatra, Jones often doesn’t need an introduction considering his mentors include prominent musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis and Ray Charles. Thanks to his many influences and accomplishments, he has had a consistent influence on the world of entertainment and beyond.

Within the first ten minutes of Jones’ discussion, he discussed how the climax and resolution of a musical piece makes scoring music a delicate process. Jones drew for the audience an imaginative picture of a horror movie without music, and explained not only how much different it would look, but how much less frightening it would be for the audience.

The importance of music in film was demonstrated by showing of the 1923 film, “Why Worry?” because composer and maestro Carl Davis conducted a live orchestra for the soundtrack of the classic as it played.

Jones said that education on the art of film is lacking in today’s youth, who are instead focused on knowledge of Hollywood and celebrities.

Jones also discussed the fact that America is one of few countries that does not have a designated Minister of Culture. He made the point that like storytelling, film is a part of the American culture that should be passed down.

Suzanne Lloyd, an archivist of old classical films and speaker at the festival, talked quite a bit about archiving and how culture can be preserved. Suzanne Lloyd is the granddaughter of Harold Lloyd, the star of “Why Worry?”.

Among the many other films honored was the well known “Wizard of Oz,” starring Judy Garland. Highlights of Garland’s career were shown prior to the 75th anniversary screening of the “Wizard of Oz,” one of the most popular events during the festival.

Specific films were also discussed at the festival, including Alan Arkin’s “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter.” He told a story of a time when his crew was shooting the film in Selma, Ala., and they were expecting to be met with bigotry and racism since some of their cast and crew were African American. On the contrary, though, they were met with open arms. Arkin told this story to demonstrate the power film has in bringing people together.